A day in the Singburi Market, Thailand 2011

This post really is pretty much for Courtney.  He always seems obsessed with pictures of foodstuffs....so here you go buddy.  These are just a few snaps I got walking through the market in town here...Sak was making green curry for me that night so together we went down and bought all the ingredients. Yum! Some of them are a bit blurry as I was trying to take them inconspicuously as I was walking. Pig's head soup anyone?

Chao Phraya, Singburi Thailand - Flood 2011

Singburi lies along the Chao Phraya river, one of the largest in Thailand. Tributaries from all over the north converge into the Chao near Singburi.  The river continues south through Bangkok and empties out in to the gulf.  But, Bangkok is well protected from flooding because massive damns have been built up north (around where I live).  The result is every year during the rainy season the Chao Phraya overflows its banks in to towns like Singburi (and many others around here) causing a lot of destruction in order to save Bangkok.  Here are just a few (poor) pictures I caught of the begining of the flooding, and some of the preparation the community is putting in to action (with no governmental support) to try to save their homes.  Things are about to get much worse as the river is now rapidly rising, and I will post some more here as they come in.

This is the entrance to the temple near where I live.  You can see a monk there on the right getting in to a little boat to try to make it back to his home (hopefully it isn't totally underwater).  


This used to be a street between the river and the temple.  Now it's just part of the river.  Cars and motos have been replaced by small boats to get around.



Here is a photo not far from the river. You can see the house in the background must be totally destroyed.  The house on the left might be luckier as they have a couple of stories to move their valuables upstairs.  Notice in the bottom right they had placed sand bags to protect there home, which now have totally overflowed.



These homes are riverfront.  They used to have long stairs leading down to the river to go fishing.  Now the river has surpassed those stairs and entered there homes, and I'm pretty sure these people are now living in the tent villages set up in higher ground.



This is a street in front of the temple where boat is now necessary to travel.  You can see the temple in the background, now also underwater.



This is inside the temple, now abandoned.



Here I am giving my students and their family a hand trying to sandbag so they may be able to save their homes.  Looking at the pictures above, I hate to think how futile it may have been.





Though far luckier than those living closer to the river, my house did get a little damaged.

This a view outside my living room at what used to be my yard.



This is a picture a snapped just before the water came through this door in to my house.  Underneath that water was a patio where I used to cook and clean dishes (outdoor kitchens are pretty common here).



Water several feet deep here next to my house.  I'm hoping these banana trees are not lost.



Another picture of the no-more outdoor kitchen.



This is a picture of the school ground where I work.  The water was remarkably deep. School is now closed for a week.



Things have calmed down now (for me). The water has receded from my home.  But the worse seems yet to come for those living closer to the river.  If that's the case, and people end up living in these tents who had to evacuate their homes, for longer than expected, I may begin to take up a collection to bring those 'tent cities' some basic necessities.  I need first to look in to what the immediate needs are, without being an asshole American trying to 'save these poor people".  But, I have lots of friends in America...and the dollar goes incredibly far here.  A small donation from you can go a long way in Singburi, and other towns even worse off than there.  If you have the means at the moment and are interested, let me know.

Wild (home) Life

Just a few of the creepy crawlys that seem to have my made my home, theirs.  Found another snake skin in my kitchen, possibly cobra according to the neighbors.  Unfortunately I tossed it before snapping a picture.  Here are the rest....

This guy comes up to my porch pretty regularly.  Other than having to check my shoes in the morning to make sure he isn't down in them, he's not much of a nuisance so I leave him be...



Have no idea why this huge crab keeps showing up in my driveway.  There is a creek behind my house, but I guess he sees my driveway as a little vacation before he heads back home.  (crap just tried to upload this here and its a blurry photo.  I'll ad it when I snap a new one on my next sighting).

This is a catfish flopping around in my driveway.  With the monsoon season here the creek out back keeps over flowing and flooding my house, so he must have gotten lost.  I nudged him back towards the flooded area and he seemed fine.

Yet another fish on the street.  This one was hopeless.  The flooded area (see the next post) was quite far away so I had no idea how he got there.



And finally, this little puppy has appeared at my house.  He's dirty and cute as hell.  I feed him more than he needs....so he has begun to stick around.



I promise as soon as that cobra shows up again I'll snap a picture (from a safe distance of course), and add it here.

Vesak

Here at Wat Bot these monks are putting their forheads to the floor, 3 times, facing the image of the Buddha as a way of giving thanks and respect to the Great Teacher during the chanting and meditation  on Vesak. Vesak is a Buddhist Holiday in which the birth, enlightenment and death  of the historical Buddha are observed .

For Theravada Buddhists here in Thailand, Vesak is an important day to be marked by rededication to the dharma and the Eightfold Path. Monks and nuns meditate and chant the ancient rules of their orders. Laypeople bring flowers and offerings to the temples, where they may also meditate and listen to talks.

I was honored to have been invited in to the temple by Phra Chanamed, my new friend and teacher, to observe and even take pictures and recordings.  Though I was told over and over that I was allowed to walk all around and snap photos during the ceremony, I felt I would be too great of a distraction to those meditating, so I just stayed in the back.  Still, I got a few decent shots...

This little guy here was way in the back kneeling next to me.  He's supposed to be following the chanting while praying or meditating, but instead hes just staring at me, the big white guy...after this picture I decided to leave the building because I was just distracting too many people with my presence.

Here is a shot of Phra Chanamed in the doorway of the temple - he's keeping an eye on the novices and making sure they are paying attention:



This is a brief video I captured during the chanting of the Dharma, which continued for about an hour - sorry it's sideways, when I rotated it and saved it transfered it to a format that WordPress does not accept, so I had to use this original:

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Here's a few more shots and I grabbed during the ceremony:

Yes

Phud, tho, phud, tho…

Phud, breathe in….tho, breathe out….phud, breathe in, tho, breathe out.

Here I am on the floor of Wat Bot, in the lotus position, meditating alongside my new ‘teacher,’ Phra Chanamed.  It’s hot in here, and I’m supposed to be concentrating.  Or is it that I’m supposed to not be concentrating?  I think his brief lesson before we began said to do neither, to be empty, but I can’t remember because I’m thinking too much about squinting the sweat out of my eyes.

Phud in, tho out, phud in, tho out.  I want a cigarette.

He told me he would let me know when our 30 minutes is up, so there is no need to open my eyes and look at the clock.  I want to anyway, but I don’t.  It’s a small success. But then I start thinking, how does he know when the time is up without opening his eyes?

Phud in, tho out, in out in out.  David.  Athens.  Should I have finished my degree?  Phud in, tho out, in out in out in out in out.  Will my students like me?  Will I like them?  In out in out in out.  Am I doing this right?  Is he watching me right now?  Can he see that I keep squirming because this new lotus position thing is incredibly uncomfortable?  Phud in, tho out.  Of course he’s not watching me, nor is he thinking about me.  He’s actually meditating.  Me?  I am sitting, and I am sweating.

“Phud-Tho.”  It means awareness (not a direct translation as “phud” means speak – it’s just what  Phra Chanamed said it means when I asked for the meaning).  I do feel aware.  Aware of the sweat dripping down my back, aware of a noisy bird just outside the window that has overstayed his welcome, aware of the pain in my ankles and my left foot going numb, aware of a million things running through my mind from regret to excitement, fear and loneliness.  I am alone in this new world and I am aware.  And I know this is not the kind of awareness P. Chanamed spoke of about before we began.  I am failing.

I feel his presence move so I open my eyes.  Now begins the walking meditation, something I have never tried before.  I mimic his movement…he is rolling his feet, one in front of another so slowly it almost appears as if he is not moving at all.  Left foot phuuuuuuuud…..right foot thoooooooooo…..left, right.  After 30 minutes in the lotus position, eyes closed, I at least was able to reach that stage where thoughts, good and bad, were somewhat freely flowing through my mind.  But now, this walking, this walking is so slow that all I can think about is not tipping over.  I feel hot and fat.  Three trips up and down the temple floor and I say to him “Phra I can’t free my mind, all I can think about is placing one foot in front of another.”  He smiles, “Yes.”

And we continue.  Phud left, tho right, phud left, tho right. Another 30 minutes.  I have the rhythm down, but my mind is still not free.

We are finished. We kneel, touch our foreheads to the floor three times facing the image of the Buddha as a show of respect and together we leave the temple.

We walk out in to the blistering sun and he asks how I feel. I tell him I feel good, relaxed, like I just slowed down even if just a little.  But I also tell him I don’t think I did a very good job, completing one single hour was so difficult for me I was actually embarrassed.  He asks, “If you feel good and relaxed, then why you say you do a bad job?” I laugh and tell him, “Because I am an American of course, and we are excellent at self-deprecation.”   He doesn’t know the word “deprecation” but he likes my joke anyway, I can tell.

We continue our walk back to the building where he lives behind the temple.  This guy walks slowly, seriously slowly.  He does everything slow….smiles slowly and talks slowly, he reaches for things slowly and drinks his water slowly.  Each time he asks me a question and I answer he thinks, slowly, before speaking again.  I like it, and it makes me nervous.  It makes me feel like he knows me.

He asks if I want to be a monk.  I laugh and tell him I don’t know what I want to be.  He asks if that is why I am here.  I tell him I am here because Marissa said I should come, that she told me about this place.  He pauses for a really long time and then says, “But maybe that’s not why you are here.”  We both smile again.  Him slowly, me nervously.  This guy is intense as hell, but so playful you almost don’t notice.  He is thoughtful and centered and aware, but quick to crack a joke and make sure you see his eyes smile while you talk.  I like him.  I love him.  Marissa told me this would happen.  But she did not tell me we would end up in the temple meditating for an hour, and she did not tell me we would end up spending the entire morning and part of the afternoon discussing life and love and needs and the “world outside” and desire and anxiety.  She did not tell me I would meet this person and have a new friend, and maybe even a new teacher, on hello.

As I say goodbye he says quietly “I hope I see you again.”  I say, “You will.” Then he laughs (which he does often) and says “With you student you teach soon, you will need meditate a lot.” I laugh too and tell him he’s very funny.

I begin the 15 kilometer drive on my moto back to my home in Singburi, the next town over.  A short trip, but just long enough to think….Did that shit really just happen?  Did I seriously just end up in a temple meditating with this amazing monk?  Did I really just melt in to those people and pour my heart out and beg them to tell me how to stop wanting?  Was I really just asked to return to study the teachings, to meditate more, to meet the Abbot?

Yes.

I got back to my apartment, cranked up my aircon, and layed down on my bed (of which the interior is made of coconut husks, mind you….seriously WHERE ARE THE SPRING MATRESSES?).  I fell asleep and dreamed I was with David and his family in Laos.  But I wasn’t happy.  I was very, very tired, and very hungry.  And then I dreamed of pork fried in curry paste over rice with a fried egg on top.  And then I woke up, got back on my moto, and came here to my favorite little eatery where I am eating pork fried in curry paste over rice with a fried egg on top.  And everyone is looking at me funny wondering why I am here with my laptop, sweating and typing away.  And I don’t mind, because I’m letting go.

It’s the lesson of the day.

Like Squirrels, but MONKEYS

So I drove my moto about 30 kilometers east to this town called Lopburi.  Interesting place.....there are monkeys everywhere!  Pretty much like squirrels everywhere in Ohio, but if you ask me....way more cool.  There is a really old temple built there in honor of, or respect of, or something of the monkeys (marrissa, katie, is this true?) because they have been living with the people for so long.  That's the picture above.  Below is a couple vids of the monkeys being monkeys. I also visited a couple of the discoteques....but what can I say, it was fun, but they were pretty much like discoteques everywhere.  The end.

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Finally, I don't have to hire a driver....

So I bought a bike....little Honda 125cc, slightly used and in excellent condition.  Totally love it.  And....I'm already comfortable using it Thai style...which means pretending it's actually a pick up truck.  Here you can see my new desk top and a stool for my balcony at my new place strapped to the back.  This is actually considered a light load.  Isn't she pretty?

EAT! (food porn for courtney)

So whenever I wander the world and try writing about it I usually get a message from my dear friend Courtney to post pictures of FOOD.  So this time, my friend, I'm being proactive....

One of the the first people I met in my new town is Note.  He saw me trying to communicate with a guy about buying a moto and came over to help because he speaks English (really well, actually).  Anyway, that first night here in Singburi he gathered his friends and took me out to dinner.  I insisted on paying, but of course he refused...."My country, I welcome you." Here's what we ate:

So that is a crispy fried catfish with dried red pepper, flash fried basil, and fermented egg, which you take tiny pieces at a time and add it to the catfish and basil.  Totally incredibly, by far my new favorite food.  This dish is about 90 Baht, or 3 dollars.

This is pretty standard around here....thai salad with prawns.  It's really common to see this sort of salad, or the papaya salad (which I don't care for too much).  Here you have your veggies and bamboo shoots and cashew nuts and dried peppers and huge shrimps.  It's generally one of the more spicy dishes you will find, and by Thai standards that means for most Americans it's nearly inedible.  For me, I totally loved, and the shrimp were so tender.  This dish was 70 Baht, or just over 2 bucks.  One of my faves...

Morning glory here, or so I was told.  A chinese dish of course but pretty sure it's a common thing around here too.  Couldn't quite figure out what the sauce was though....wasn't quite fish sauce but wasn't quite soy either, and not too salty.  Delicious.  45 Baht, or just over a buck.

The final dish was a crispy fried pork, heavy on the garlic and REALLY heavy on the pepper.  Pretty sure that's about the most common thing to find around here.  Looks like I didn't grab a picture of that....50 Baht, or just under two bucks.

And that would be my new friend Note on the left chowing, and on the right is his friend Maks who I have also come to really enjoy.  He speaks a bit of English too, and one day before I bought my own moto he drove me around for like a billion hours helping me shop for random stuff for me new apartment.  Both really amazing, nice guys....but who isn't in Singburi?

So these two kids joined us for this dinner too but I can't remember their names.  They are 'brothers' of Note, but not actual brothers.  The translation was a bit broken, but from what I understand they were both orphaned and Note has sorta taken them under his wing...hiring them in his shop and having them live in his home.  The one on the left is 13, his parents "ran away" when he was 11.  I couldn't really get more information than that because the English was rough.  The one on the right is 20 and is Laotion.  His father died when searching for metal in the north to sell and was killed by unexploded ordinance.  His mother then moved to Bangkok for work but couldn't support him, so he ended up here in Sinburi working for Note.  They both kind of do a lot of odd jobs around town to support themselves, and Note shelters them and feeds them.  I have started hiring them for small errands and the like as well.  Both are really sweet and seem interested in learning English from me.  We'll see...

This is a realllllly poor quality close up of that 'fermented' egg I mentioned above.  But, I'm not really sure if it is actually fermented.  I tried asking what it was and Note said it's "put in jar with many salt for many months until finish."  It's incredibly salty, and they seem to take tiny pieces of it and put it on a spoonful of that catfish and rice.  Any idea what's goin on hear Courtney?

This is what I'm eating for breakfast pretty much every morning, or a variation of it.  Ground pork stir fried with morning glory and some peppers over rice.  Usually I get a fried egg on top, and everything always comes with that side of fish sauce that apparently you are supposed to just drench everything with (as if fish sauce isn't consumed enough here already).  I usually buy this at the food cart out in front of my apartment for 20-30 baht (just under a dollar) depending on whether I add that egg...and I totally always add that egg.  Cucumbers are always thrown in on the side to cool the palate after all that spicy stuff...but if it's from a street cart I never eat them because I get freaked out about food poisoning ever since my 'incident' in Cambodia.  My rule is....if it isn't cooked, I don't eat it unless it's in a shell, or I washed it myself.  This dish here is usually my standard food throughout the day, those first dishes above are actually kind of expensive so that was more of a 'special' occasion.

My new favorite snack!  I can't remember the name of this fruit but I bet Marissa will.  It's found everywhere here.  You peel off the soft outer skin and inside is a grape-like fruit, but slightly more bitter.   I think it's like ten baht (a quarter) for a bunch of this stuff...they just sorta wrap it up in old newspaper and give it to you.  Oh...and the other little sticks with the plastic ribbons there is NOT food.....you stick money on those and then give it to the temple as merit during hollidays or just when going to give thanks or something.  I can't remember how they ended up there in my bunch of fruit...but there it is.

So there you have it, Court!  Hope you enjoyed....next time I'll take actual video of me slurping curry while moaning or something....I totally know you will love that.

Peace and Food!